BHUBANESWAR: Away from the hustle bustle of the modern-day Bhubaneswar, there lies the ruins of the British rest house of the 80s near city's Palashpalli flyover.
In Colonial India, the 'Dak Bungalows' anchored the nomadic lives of the British officers. Built in the 1840s, these structures had been a repository of the British Government's influence on India. These rest houses exhibited the confluence of Indo-British architecture. The walls are witness to innumerable stories of the social life of British officers. Besides, they were known for the Indian cooks who prepared courses of chicken, mutton and fish on a whim. In fact, the fiery Railway mutton curry or Mutton Dak Bungalow, which is now a speciality on the menu of fine-dining restaurants in the country, originated from the kitchens of these guesthouses.
Once upon a time, Bhubaneswar had a Dak Bungalow too. The present-day Dak Bungalow Chhaka has derived its name from the colonial structure which used to provide shelter to the British officers travelling from Cuttack to Puri. Unlike the Dak Bungalows in the novels of Rudyard Kippling, surrounded by misty mountains and pine trees, the one in Bhubaneswar was located in the Ekamra Khetra.
Set in the Old Town area, Ekamra Kshetra forms the centre of the temple architecture in the city. The Dak Bungalow was located at the western-most portion of the Ekamra Kshetra. The travellers could approach it from two sides: the aerodrome or the Kalpana Sqaure.
Renowned dramatist Ananta Mahapatra was one of the few Indian visitors who had spent their holidays at this Dak Bungalow. His memoirs of the rest house date back to 1947. He used to visit the rest house with his father Justice Harihar Mahapatra and mother during the summer vacations. The City Express interacted with Ananta to bring you how the Dak Bungalow used to be.
“My parents used to spend some time during the vacation. There was no road connection except for the summer season, when we would drive up from Cuttack, cross river Kathajodi and Kuakhai to approach the Dak Bungalow from the aerodrome area. During the Monsoon, we would take a train to reach the old Bhubaneswar station. This was the only railway station at that time. We would take a bullock cart to reach the Dak Bungalow. There were no rickshaws at that time. Only a few, hand-pulling rickshaws appeared a little later,” he recalled.
As Ananta recollected, there used to be a small-level crossing in the stretch between Kalpana Sqaure and the Dak Bungalow. “There were no buildings at Kalpana Sqaure as you find today. There wasn’t any State Museum. There was another level-crossing at Raj Mahal Square,” he said.
The road leading to the Dak Bunglow from the city’s eastern side (Kalpana Square) was dotted with small hotels. “These hotels were called sanatoriums. These were mostly occupied by Bengali tourists who would come to fetch water from the Kedar Gouri well. They believed the water had some medicinal benefits. There aren’t any sanitoriums left. The last one was located on the stretch hitting Vivekanada road from Rabi Talkies Square. Now, it has been turned into a Kalyan Mandap. Besides, there were two Dharamsalas near Anantabasudeba mandir,” he added.
The Dak Bungalow had no electricity or supply of running water. The guests had to depend on hand-drawn fans and a well on its premises. “There was no attached toilet. The guests had to walk at least 15 yards to reach a toilet on its premises. As the capital was Cuttack, the Dak Bungalow hosted very few guests. It was only a connector between Puri and Cuttack,” he said.
During the late 40s, there wasn’t any bazaar around the Dak Bungalow. “There were tiny shops around the station and the temple. The Ratha Danda road was not there too,” he said. British officers of junior ranks would get down at the station and take special carriages parked there to reach the rest house. However, when an officer of higher rank would visit Bhubaneswar, a special bogie of the train carrying him would be dragged from the station to the level crossing. The guest house was barely 100 yards from the level crossing at Palaspalli. Today, a flyover has replaced this level crossing.
So, how is the Dak Bungalow in 2018? A portion of the Dak Bungalow was razed four years back to build a small office of the Revenue Collector. The other half is ruined. Broken walls, wild vegetation creeping in through the windows and filth are all that one could see on the premise of a structure that is historically significant. It is an abandoned property. Researcher Anil Dhir insisted that the site should have been preserved as a heritage site.
Neither the locals nor the officials at the Revenue Inspector's office were aware of the significance of the structure. "I don't know what is this building. I was posted here some eight months back," said Dilip Kumar Samal, the Revenue Inspector. "We have heard stories about the British officers, who used to stay here, from our grandparents. Now, no one comes here, except for the Revenue Department officials during the day time and spirits and drunkards at the night," said Prafulla Swain, a local.